It’s About Dedication, Isn’t It?

Friday morning message

October 10, 2014

“Let’s face it: fitness is boring. But it’s critical to be extremely dedicated to whatever you decide to take up to achieve a desired result. There’s no way you are going to get there without dedication, which is the key for me.” – Harbhajan Singh

“I’ve been dancing since I was 6 years old. That kind of relentless dedication and intensity is where I’m comfortable.” – Andrea Parker

Dear Academy friend,

I’ve been catching up with episodes of Seinfeld and while watching with the extras on, in this case the “notes about nothing”, I read the following:

“Jerry spent years on the road honing his craft. ‘My goal is to improve comedically. I want to be good enough so I can keep doing this. My success has been the harvest of what happens… when you love the thing more than the results. In my case the thing is comedy. That is the primary relationship in my life.’”

I saw all that and thought, “That sounds a like lot my life”.

I spent years (still spend time every year) on the road at first between Barbados and Los Angeles to train at the Inosanto Academy with my teacher, Sifu Dan Inosanto. Then I started following him (and a few other JKD notables) around to different cities and trained in those places also.

I really wanted to be good enough to teach martial arts for the rest of my life, even if the original plan was to work at Eastern Airlines full-time and keep JKD as a part-time avocation not to teach full-time.

Like Seinfeld I do attribute my success thus far to the dedication I have to the art of Jeet Kune Do more so than a dedication to making money from the art.

I love teaching so much that I’d do it for free if that was possible. And yes, my relationship with JKD has always been the primary relationship in my life.

That type of dedication bleeds into your daily existence in interesting ways.

Jerry explained how he and his fictional version differ in an interview for New Yorker magazine: “You want to know the difference between TV-Jerry and regular Jerry? In the show I play a very easygoing, likable, friendly guy. But in my real life, I’m quite dedicated in a very deep way to what I’m doing. It’s not something I’m just kind of skating through. I’m pretty brutal about my career.”

I believe that my Academy persona is easygoing, likeable and friendly. But in my regular life away from the Academy, I’ve been told I’m not at all likeable, easygoing, friendly or even approachable!

If that’s true then it’s because I feel I’m in my element only with martial artists and fitness enthusiasts. I’m not evolved enough to feel comfortable around mainstream people.

In that way, like Seinfeld, I’m pretty brutal with my career.

But don’t you think that anyone who’s super dedicated to his/her craft has to be a little bit “off” to some degree?

I have yet to find someone who’s serious about developing him/herself, about doing something with their lives, getting somewhere in this world, who is not intense in their approach to life.

Who’s ever achieved anything by being “lukewarm”? Do you know anyone?

Now go out and conquer the world,

Sifu DW for TeamUMAA
www.unifiedmartialart.com
“Using Martial Art As a vehicle for personal growth and development”
305 595-2892

P.S. JKD Sihings Yhave Montalvo and Gil Morales will be teaching a new “JKD Street Defense” class on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 6.00am starting next week Tuesday, 10/14. Details available from the TeamUMAA/MVP office.

P.P.S. Evaluation results will be posted on Monday 10/13 and Jr. and Adult JKD Graduation will be on Friday 10/17 at 6.00pm followed by the first edition of “Friday Night Fights” at 7.00pm. Details available from the TeamUMAA/MVP office.

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